How small businesses can harness the power of community engagement

For small businesses, community and customers are the same. Having an active role in community events can have a profound impact on marketing reach and company recognition. Community engagement is also not limited entirely to charitable donations, as many seem to believe. Community engagement is providing any service or making your company available to be useful to the public. 

By getting involved in the issues and events your customers care about, you position yourself to have more meaningful and open relationships with the people you serve. Once customers recognize your business for its human element, they are more likely to become regular customers who support your business's vision in their community. 

The most important aspect of small business community engagement is finding the right cause or organization on which to focus your attention. A popular route is the sponsorship of youth sports teams. For businesses such as sporting goods stores or youth clothing suppliers, sponsoring a local team is a natural extension of their services. For a small fee that is commonly tax deductible, the company's logo is placed on each player's uniforms, granting exposure to spectators, families and friends.

Cause marketing is also a popular means of endearing your business to community activists. Local charities regularly struggle to find funding, and thrive on the generosity of their community. Fox Business News suggests hosting a fundraiser or supporting charitable events to increase both the visibility and public perception of your business. 

Ladies,  be sure to check out Charity Chics, a great resource for professional networking and a way to give back to our local community. Charity Chics meets the third Tuesday of each month at On Point.  All monies collected from membership dues and chance raffles is given back to the local community.

On Point Executive Center regularly hosts charity and networking events for our community and our clients. Through our virtual office services, we have helped businesses in their transition to the Tampa area, and our furnished office space and conference rooms are ideal for hosting your company's next community event.